HouseNews

I have been delighted to support our students at inter-school sport, seeing them not only conquer their opponents, but do so with such a great sense of team and endeavour. Whether on the field or in the classroom, there are marvellous activities occurring. I am thrilled to share the great work of J4 with their ‘MIVID’ experience last Friday… a mini VIVID demonstrated the fabulous work by the girls and their pride in sharing their learning. 

Another wonderful initiative gaining momentum this year has been the work of the Sustainability Group headed up by Prefect Lachlan, with the great support of Mr Hine. Herbs, lettuce and tomatoes are finding their way to our Canteen menu and they have an excellent composting process in place; in all, it has been an outstanding project for these marvellous secondary students. Additionally, our weekly secondary Assembly segment, the Give it a Grow Award acknowledges students who are focused on this important element of our School. With members in the group coming from Years 8, 9 and 12, we are well placed to continue this work. 

Our Year 12 students are in the midst of their trials and I am sure you will be wishing them every success. The unusual set of circumstances for our HSC cohort this year has given an added level of stress and thus our approach to support each student to find the positive and successful elements through the latter part of their course has been central.

I do wonder, long in the future, when we all remember 2020 and “The Virus”, which elements of this time will resonate most? Will your children remember quite different elements to you? As I have shared, I do hope it is the wonderful sense of family and shared activities that will be key. It will also be a time when we determine what is important in life and I am guessing that you as parents will ask yourselves what you want for your children as they prepare for their futures. We can be certain that their experiences will be more complex and with a greater degree of uncertainty than the past. Given this, the way we support your children at Pittwater House and the approaches we take to wellbeing, with our small family orientation, will, I trust, give you comfort. We know your children. We seek out your support and knowledge regarding your children in order that we work in harmony. It is this I believe that gives us an edge and you, reassurance.

Your sons and daughters will never be just one of the crowd…

Addendum: Since writing this piece, the NSW Government has provided ‘A Guide to NSW School Students for Term 3’, outlining activities allowed, activities on hold for Term 3 and activities that are cancelled. Our Skoolbag advice to you on Monday shares the impact of this advice in an evolving situation. Please find a copy of the letter from myself and the Deputy Principal below.

The Maths Study Centre for Years 7-12 occurs on Tuesdays and Thursdays in the Library from 3:30 – 4:20pm. 

As part of our Community Problem Solving project, we are going to be posting recipes using Indigenous ingredients to help promote their use as they are more sustainable for our land.

This weeks recipe uses River Mint and (optional) Macadamia Nuts to make delicious brownies. The indigenous ingredients gives them a twist and makes them taste extra special, so we highly recommend giving this super easy recipe a go to incorporate these ingredients!

Year 1 in Focus

Year one has enjoyed being back at School this term. Our favourite things so far have been:

• Playing with our friends in the courtyard. We love that the activities change each week!
• Learning about how greenhouses work in science and starting to think about how we could build our own. We are all very excited to get started on our own creations this week.
• Year 1 coding and construction clubs
• Our robotics incursion. We learnt how to program our robots using the iPads and were so excited when our codes worked!
  

Science Week

Science is alive and loved every week in the Junior School.

This week in Science Kindergarten will be discussing the question, ‘What happens when there is a storm? They will consider what storms are, where they are formed, how they are formed and safety procedures when there is a storm about. Kindergarten will then be making their own weather chart. The students will be creating their own symbols for 4 types of weather most commonly experienced in Sydney (rain, sun, wind, cloud). 

This term in Science Year 1 are learning about how greenhouses work. They have explored lots of different types of greenhouses and are getting ready to build their own.

Year 3 are looking at heating and cooling in Science this semester. They are exploring the types of heat, heat transfer and how states of matter change under different conditions.

Studying the topic Food and Fibre, the students of Year 4 are describing how living things depend on each other, and the environment to survive. Advancing technologies used in food and fibre production in Australian and traditional agriculture are being explored. The students will also design, plan and produce a product, a system or an environment to support the growth of a plant and/or animal to be used to produce food or fibre.

In Year 5 Science the students are studying the natural hazards of Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Droughts and Bushfires and their potential to cause disaster. The students are learning about the dynamic processes that cause geological and meteorological hazards and explore how scientists predict and measure them. They will study the rapid change at the Earth’s surface caused by natural events and how technology has assisted people to plan for natural disasters and minimise their effect.

Year 6 has been busy learning about electricity and circuits. We have enjoyed our inquiry investigations—tinkering with batteries, light bulbs and wires!

Debating

Congratulations to Year 6 debating team A winning their first round in the virtual debating competition against Macarthur Anglican College. Watch this space for more news on the next debate on Friday when Year 6 debating team B will debate against Bundaberg Christian College.

Just a quick reminder that our Book Character Parade is being held next week on Wednesday 26 August starting at 9am. Students can stay in their costumes all day but please be mindful that any props or costume pieces are named, and that PE gear is sent along if required that day.

The Zoom link will be sent out via Skoolbag, CANVAS and Seesaw just prior to the event. We will be staggering the parade with ECC – Year 3 parading between 9-9:30 and Years 4-6 between 9:40-10:10 with a video interlude based on this year’s CBCA Book of the Year short-listed picture books between 9:30-9:40. 

If any of the CBCA short listed books that you see during our video interlude seem appealing, you can purchase a copy through our local book supplier, The Beachside Bookshop https://beachsidebookshop.com/. Plus they will deliver to school for free!

Hope to see all your friendly faces on Zoom!

Dear Parents and Guardians,

Following on from our note on skoolbag last week  - As we continue in this new-normal of Covid-19 uncertainty, our proposed events for Term 3 will be postponed until the time comes when life is a little less complicated. We will share news as and when we can, so please keep an eye on Skoolbag and House News for updates. 

In the meantime, to keep our Community connected, we feel that it is important to continue to have regular forums for parents to check in with the PHPA and each other.  Our Term 3 Parent Community update is scheduled for Friday 21st August, 9am via Zoom. Come along and chat with Parents from around the school and we can also look forward to hearing from our regular guest speaker, Dr Hillier, who will share some behind the scene insights on school life. 

The link and meeting details will be sent out via Class Network Parents and all Parents/Guardians are very welcome and encouraged to join. Note that you don't have to say anything on the zoom if you so wish, just call in and smile at the camera...although a prize for the most eye catching zoom background could be in order!

Best wishes,

The PHPA Team

Clothing Pool/Second Hand Uniform Shop Reminders

• Appointments only. A reminder that the PHPA Clothing Pool (Second Hand Uniform Shop ) will continue with appointments only for the foreseeable future.  Please email phpaclothingpool@tphs.nsw.edu.au to organise and a volunteer parent will meet you at the agreed time at the clothing pool. Parents with an appointment will need to go directly to and from the clothing pool without visiting other parts of the school. All visitors will be requested to use the provided hand sanitiser before entering the clothing pool.

• Payments for sold items:  Please check you email inbox regularly for an email from the clothing pool advising if monies are due to you for any sold items.

Temporary Opening/Closing Time Change

The School Uniform Shop will be open on Thursday 27 August from 8am–12 noon. It will then be closed the following days: Friday 28th, Monday 31st August and Tuesday 1st September. The Uniform Shop will resume regular Opening/Closing times starting Wednesday 2nd September from 8am-4pm (lunch closure 12-12.30pm). Please refer to regular Uniform Shop Term Time Hours below. 

School Uniform Shop - Fittings and Purchases Only by Appointment - No Drop Ins

All fittings are strictly by appointment only and only one family member may accompany the student to the appointment. Please call Mrs Tess Spark on: 9972 5721 or email: school.shop@tphs.nsw.edu.au to book your appointment or for further inquires. For other purchases we suggest you utilise the online order forms available here. The uniform shop manager will call or email you to let you know when the items are available for collection. This will significantly reduce the number of people in the uniform shop at any one time.

Please Note: Students in Years K-6 must have written permission eg. email, note in diary from their parent/guardian in order to purchase items from the School Uniform Shop.